


When the Sun Shines Again

by Mystic_Ender



Series: Living in the Past [3]
Category: Five Nights at Freddy's
Genre: Also yes, Alternate Universe, Human AU, M/M, as like a break from the angst i wrote not too long ago, no it is not william afton, take this sweet little thing while i try and come up with more ideas for the au, the store is owned by spring bonnie, this is a soda shop side story, you know
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-27
Updated: 2020-07-27
Packaged: 2021-03-05 21:27:33
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,777
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25552036
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mystic_Ender/pseuds/Mystic_Ender
Summary: While it may seem that to Fazbear Newspaper Company that the world stops spinning every time an attack was made against them, the truth was that the world kept spinning. It kept moving, lives continued elsewhere. Someone died, someone was born. Someone celebrated a birthday, someone went to a party with friends.The world kept spinning for a little soda shop tucked into a street corner. The world kept spinning for the two employees of the place and its weird owner.
Relationships: Michael Afton/Jeremy Fitzgerald
Series: Living in the Past [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1843966
Comments: 4
Kudos: 20





	When the Sun Shines Again

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, hello! This is a little side story while I try and come up with more ideas fo the rest of the Human AU! Writing this also had been a change from the angst I wrote for like... five days straight. It felt good to write something else after the heavy subjects I had dropped on paper. So yeah.
> 
> I hope you guys enjoy reading it!

While to the employees of the Fazbear Newspaper Company it looked as if the world stopped spinning every time a new announcement was made on Baby’s Local Radio, the truth was that to everyone else, the world still spun. A painful day to them was a normal day to someone else, a day where panic gripped their hearts was someone else’s happiest day. One thing that remained the same, however, was how bad the weather had been lately.

The rain poured down the streets and thunder crashed as people ran to safety, and in that rush, someone stepped into a little soda shop tucked into a corner where only those who searched for it would find it. The owner preferred it that way and the employee that usually worked behind the counter did too. Tiny, cozy booths were near the windows, a couple of tables were against the wall in front of those, and tall uncomfortably stools were at the main counter. It was maybe a little cramped, but it just added to the whole cozy atmosphere of the place.

The man in question sighed in relief once the door closed behind him and looked around the place. A singular person was sitting at a table, reading the newspaper and drinking from a fancy glass bottle. The person didn’t even blink as thunder crashed right outside the windows, and it unnerved Jeremy a little. He then looked away and made his way to the counter, where no one was standing behind it. A little bell was on the counter and a sign indicated to ring it if they were away. A little bunny face was even doodled on it. As Jeremy shrugged and was about to ring the bell, someone left the door on the side that gave on the employee area.

“Is there anything that I can do for you today?” The employee asked. The man was tall, taller than Jeremy, and had long brown hair tied in a tiny ponytail. Dark eye bags decorated his face, but his eyes still looked wide and alert. The effect of coffee, maybe. The man simply waited there as Jeremy stared, slowly lifting a brow as the other didn’t answer the question.

“Hi!, Uh yes, you can, uh.. Michael..” Jeremy said, after snapping out of it. He squinted at the tiny name tag on the guy’s apron, slowly drifting forward to see it, before leaning back. Jeremy tapped his fingers nervously on the counter as he tried to form his words. “I had, uh done an interview the other day and was hired, so I was just, uh… here…. to start my day…”

“The employee door was in the back, you know,” The man indicated in slight amusement before lifting the part of the counter that could be removed to allow the employees to pass. Once Jeremy came in, he closed it and guided Jeremy to the back of the store. “Wait here,”

“I- oh. Yeah, I should’ve… yeah, I should’ve checked the back,” Jeremy awkwardly answered once they were in the employee-only room, and watched as Michael ducked into the boss office. The room was fairly different than the actual store, seeing that while the walls were a deep wine red in the customer’s place, here it was a fading beige. Small lockers were in the farthest wall, and there were hooks with aprons on them for the employees. A small coffee area sat on a table with a couple of chairs around it for when the others were on break. It was very different, but the atmosphere followed even into this room. He felt right at home.

“Alright, here’s your name tag,” Michael said once he emerged from the boss’s office, the door closing behind him. He waited for Jeremy to pin it on his shirt before stretching his hand out for a handshake with the newbie in front of him. “Name’s Michael Afton. I’ll be the one showing you what you have to do.”

“Jeremy Fitgerald,” He greeted back, shaking Michael’s hand. Once the last name registered, though, Jeremy froze into place with his hand still gripping the taller man’s. Afton… Afton… where had he heard that? When it registered that he was still holding Michael’s hand, he quickly dropped it as if it burned him, and took a step back. “Ah, well… sorry about that. But uh, I gotta ask…”

“Go ahead,” He replied, amusement clear as a smirk appeared on his face. That Jeremy guy was amusing so far, that much he could admit. A little bit awkward, but the kind that became charming over time. A little bit similar to the boss, but not completely. Michael crossed his arms as he waited for Jeremy to form his question. “I can’t read minds, you know, you’ll have to eventually tell me what you want to know,”

“Are you… related to the owner of Baby’s Local Radio? By any chance?” He asked nervously and watched as the man in front of him tensed up a bit at the question before quickly relaxing again. Jeremy still looked curious, though. He will not let the question drop. By the reaction, it showed that he was right, though he wanted to hear it confirmed.

“Yeah, I am. She’s my sister.” He told him with a sigh, before taking an apron and handing it over to him, clearly indicating that Jeremy had to put it on before going out and into the store. It was fairly simple looking, a black and white striped apron that changed from the usual ugly ones he saw in other stores. It was still uncomfortable to wear in some ways, but at least it not being beige made it more enjoyable to have on your person for eight hours a day. “Now come on, we don’t have all day.”

When Jeremy stepped back into the store with Michael, he quickly noticed that the singular man he had seen early still hadn’t moved. The only difference with his pose was the fact that the glass bottle for his soda was now empty, and it unnerved him somewhat, but he didn’t quite know how. Still, he moved his attention from the man to Michael, who was waiting for him to look back at him.

The tall man showed him where the bottles were to restock the wall behind him, he showed where the cleaning supplies were, and he showed him how the cash register worked before moving on to basics for taking orders. Which, was simple, but he supposed he really had to be shown everything on how to do the damn job. He wondered if he would be shown how to even hand over a bottle of soda. It was ridiculous, but he went with it.

“Alright, now, we move on to regular patrons,” Michael announced, before taking out a photo album from under the counter. Inside were various pages filled with pictures, names, and orders. A few didn’t have the order part, and Jeremy assumed it was because it always changed. Though… he noticed some had warnings on them.

“...Why do some of these have warnings?” He asked nervously as he passed the third picture with a warning written under it. It mentioned not allowing the man on the picture to use the bathrooms, though Jeremy simply did not know why. And he really did not want to know, too, when he thinks about it.

“Those were added by me after I lived through the consequences of my actions a couple of times,” Michael explained, before stopping on one picture in particular. It showed a small group of teenagers with huge smile on their faces and crazed eyes. They look like the type of people he could see would rob a bank when drunk. “This group. Don’t let them have more than three sodas each and don’t allow them to keep the glass bottles. They get a sugar high when they drink past three of what we got, and then they smash the bottles. A pain to clean.”

“...And how do you know how many each had?” Jeremy asked, looking at the picture again in hope that it would burn in his mind so that he remembers it when he closes his eyes. He did not want to be freaked out by breaking glass bottles. Michael went under the desk and pulled out small, colored, round stickers. There were four colors, enough for each of the teens on the picture. He assumed he would need to put those on the bottles, then. “And how many times did it take you before you learned?”

“That, we don’t speak about,” Michael replied, looking deeply embarrassed in the moment. Jeremy lifted a brow slowly at the reaction. Surely it couldn’t have taken that many tries? After Michael saw the look on his face, the man simply sighed and nodded, confirming that it took a lot of tries to get right. He then cleared his throat and flipped through the pages, his finger landing on a spot where a big interrogation was drawn in silver marker. “There’s this guy that comes in with different looks each time. He asks for a beer, and I’m pretty sure he’s an undercover cop. So when he asks, just give him a root beer. He looks disappointed each time and it’s great.”

“Anything that remains the same?” 

“His beard. He almost looks like Santa Claus. Big white beard, and bushy eyebrows so big you barely see his eyes. He also always has a different hat on, though the outfit always changes. He came in fishing garb, one day, and then the next he came wearing the most expensive suit I’ve ever seen.” Michael shrugged, before flipping through the album again and landing on the picture of the guy from earlier with the bathroom warning. “Don’t let this one in the bathroom. Whatever you do.”

The hour continued like this for a bit until the rain calmed down and the sun shone through the heavy clouds. Michael put the album back under the counter and watched as a stream of customers came in. Some Jeremy could recognize from the album, and along with them was the bathroom guy. Michael patted him on the back in encouragement before taking out a fancy round tray and going to the tables and booths to take orders from these people.

The morning passed by quickly, and he found that even if the job was repetitive, it was enjoyable. The few patrons with warnings that came in kept the day interesting, as he had to constantly keep an eye on them. Good thing he did, too, seeing he had needed to jump over the counter once to stop the guy from entering the bathrooms. It startled a few patrons, and the guy almost looked disappointed to be told he couldn’t, but Jeremy really did not want to know what would happen if he got in.

The radio blared the news during his lunch break, and during the rest of the day, various shows and music stations played over the store. It was Baby’s, and he figured that the only reason it played into the store was that Michael had to support his sister in one way or another. Not that Jeremy minded, anyway. One of his favorite shows came from that station, and the Lolbit person always made the stories more interesting. When the first wave of patrons was gone, Jeremy could allow himself to relax behind the counter. This was more tiring than he thought.

“Just wait until tonight’s customer wave,” Michael said behind him, passing by to put the tray back. It still made Jeremy jump, since he hadn’t heard him make his way to the counter. He chuckled a bit and patted Jeremy on the back before disappearing into the break room. He was taking his break, then. Good to know. He might take it soon, too…

Though, that thought was quickly cut off when the bell above the door jingled and announced a customer. The man entering was dripping from head to toe from the rain that started once again, and he was wearing what looked like pajama pants. A trench coat was added on top of the look. It certainly was weird, and when Jeremy noticed the Santa Claus beard and the bushy eyebrows, he sighed and stood up straighter. If it was an undercover cop, he didn’t want to give the guy reasons to think he had anything bad.

“What can I get you today?” He asked in fake happiness once the guy sat at a stool near the counter. It was the one nearest the cash register and was also the closest to the break room’s door. Nobody really sat there since it was always uncomfortable to have someone stand so close, even if it’s just to pay. So yeah, that guy was weird.

“Where is the other employee?” The man grunted out after a little while of pure silence, the only sound coming from the radio behind them. The man’s voice was rough as if he had smoked too much in his lifetime and then screamed not too long ago. It was weird and slightly unnerving to Jeremy, but he didn’t let it get to him.

“On break. Is there anything I can get you?” He asked again, trying to remain as patient as possible. Sure he had taken care of a few patrons like the guy today, but his aura already made his patient wear thin by it alone. He just… felt weird.

A few seconds of silence.

“A beer.”

Jeremy nodded and turned to take a bottle of root beer, its deep brown bottle different than the rest of the bottles. It clashed against the other colors, but it was just easier to spot than some. It hadn’t been the first time that day he almost gave the wrong soda to the wrong person simply because the color of the glass was the same as the rest. When he gave the bottle to the man, the bearded weirdo didn’t even open it, just stared at the bottle before snorting.

“Nice try, boy. I know you’ve got actual beer somewhere around here.” The man pressed on, this time leaning a bit over the counter. Jeremy leaned back as the guy got too close for his taste, and the blond man swallowed thickly and cleared his throat before answering.

“We don’t sell beer, sir. It’s illegal.” He told the guy, trying to make his voice sound as confident as possible. The guy in the trench coat looked like the type of guy to press on if the person he was trying to get answers from looked nervous at all. And nervous, Jeremy was. He needed to show something he wasn’t.

“Bullshit.” The man replied, deadly calm and still staring at Jeremy. Slowly, an unnerving smile slowly spread on his face and he laughed a bit. “Come on boy, if you give me one, I won’t tell anyone.”

“Sir, I would appreciate if you would leave.” Michael’s voice said from behind Jeremy. A hand was put onto his shoulder and the taller man squeezed it a bit. Some would say it’s embarrassing to have someone defend you when you can do it yourself, but Jeremy found it reassuring at that moment. He didn’t realize it, but he had started to panic a bit.

“You can’t keep me out!” The man snarled and slammed a fist on the counter. His expression from earlier changed into an outright cruel one. It was the scariest thing Jeremy had seen in a while.

“Try me.”

The man snarled and left in the pouring rain, and Jeremy relaxed once the man was completely gone out of sight. Michael took his hand away, yet the blond man could still almost feel the weight if he concentrated on it. It felt like his shoulder was tingling a bit from the touch alone.

“I hate that guy,” Michael mumbled, leaning his back against the counter so that he could somehow face Jeremy. They were side to side, but it was easier to see each other’s faces this face. “Almost as bad as my father, I swear.”

“That happened before?” Jeremy asked nervously, drumming his fingers on top of the counter. He tried to calm his still racing heart, though this time it wasn’t from nervousness. Maybe it was simply remaining fear from his panic earlier.

“Yeah, once. The only reason I think he’s an undercover cop, really.” He answered with a sigh and passed a hand in his hair. It took a couple of strands out of the little ponytail he had going on, but he didn’t seem to care. “Anyway, I’m going back on my break. You’re going to be okay?”

“I will be.”

\---

Jeremy could see what Michael meant when he said to wait until the second wave of customers. This one seemed to make the one from this morning look like nothing when it had nearly drained him. He had to take orders from both Michael and the ones at the counter at record speed, and he wondered if he didn’t sprain his wrist in some way from writing down everything to try and remember it.

Though, it did help when the boss came out and started helping him. He was a tall man, and he was so thin he nearly looked like a walking stick. Which, made him look even taller. He was what looked like his end forties, though he still walked with little to no problem around the store, with a spring in his step. He looked like the weird uncle that you barely invite, but when you do, his weirdness turn to charming halfway through the night.

When the closed sign was flipped on the door, Jeremy nearly collapsed onto the counter. His legs ached from standing for so long and his back also complained a bit because of it. He rubbed his eyes and nearly poked an eye out when the boss slapped his back with a laugh.

“Good job on your first day!” The man’s laughter echoed around the room. Definitely a weird, but somehow charming, uncle. Made Jeremy think of his own actually. The man’s amber eyes looked over to Michael, who was busy mopping away the floor. “Michael didn’t give you any problems, I hope?”

That earned the boss a middle finger from Michael. Thankfully the man just laughed as if he was used to receiving those from the brown-haired employee.

“I.. no, not at all.” He straightened a bit, much to his back’s protest, and removed his apron before dumping it on the counter. His tag was still on his shirt and he removed it too before pinning it on the apron. He looked at the weather outside and seeing the rain calmed down, he packed his pockets for his lighter and cigarettes pack. “Would there be a problem with me stepping out back for a smoke?”

“Not at all! You go ahead.” The boss nearly pushed him out of the main part of the building and into the break room and Jeremy nearly stumbled because of it before catching himself. He went to the employee door that gave on the outside and sat out, putting a cigarette in his mouth. He stumbled for the lighter and cupped the front of the cigarette as he tried to light it. Once that was done, he took a deep drag and exhaled slowly.

“You don’t mind me joining?” Michael’s voice joined him after a while, and already the man was digging through his pockets his own pack and stumbling with his own lighter. The lights of the cigarettes cast some light in the darkening sky, and the smoke swirled through the little alley.

“Nah,” Jeremy reassured and took a deep drag before trying to exhale it into rings. It didn’t work. He had no idea how people did this, really. He just looked like a dumbass doing it. “Hey, Michael? You have another brother that does theatre, right?”

“Hmm? Oh yeah.” He agreed and didn’t give any more details. Guess Jeremy would have to do the digging himself.

“So how come you have this… pretty successful family and you’re stuck in a soda store? Out of all places?” He poked a bit and watched as Michael took the cigarette into his hand and crossed his arms a bit. As if to defend himself.

“I did try to be an actor for a while. Didn’t work out. Mainly because it didn’t really interest me. I was pressured into it by my father if you will. He wanted me to ‘continue the legacy’” He said, putting quotes against those last words. “So I guess you could say I became the disappointment child when that didn’t work out. What family does Jeremy Fitzgerald have, though, I wonder.”

“Not an interesting one, I’m afraid.” Jeremy snorted at the way Michael worded that end. “I have a sister, Donna. Mom had her with her second husband though. I still live with my mother, surprisingly, and she keeps asking me when I’ll bring a girl home. Hard to explain to that old woman that girls don’t interest me as much as they should,”

“What, you mean like--”

“Like that poor Finn guy on the radio today? Yeah. Whoever the guy is, I feel bad for him.” He took a drag out of his cigarette to try and hide the nervousness he felt. He didn’t want Michael to run to the police or something. Hell, maybe the boss. The guy was strong despite how thin he is. “Can’t be fun to have your secret told on public radio like that.”

The silence that followed stretched between the two of them, the only sound the wind that moved past them and made Jeremy shiver. It wasn’t really awkward, but it wasn’t comfortable either.

“Come on, I’m treating you to dinner.” Michael declared before putting out his cigarette with his shoe. He waited for Jeremy to do the same, hands in his pockets.

“Isn’t it weird to treat a coworker you barely know to dinner?” He asked, raising a brow. He still put his cigarette out on the ground, though. Clearly Michael wasn’t giving up.

“Not if it’s a date.”

Jeremy’s head snapped to look at the taller man, and he just stared for a couple of seconds. They barely knew each other, yet here he was, proposing to take him out. He was considering turning him down, though… the guy did help him out with the bearded weirdo earlier. And he was nice. So…

“Alright, why not.”


End file.
